IN A NUTSHELL.

Otago Witness, Issue 3035, 15 May 1912, Page 49

IN A NUTSHELL.

I H. Hiclcey has about 15 horses in work at Hastings. Kostroma has b?en sent home, and will be treated to a spell. Amundsen should be a first-class name for a horse first to the pole. Gunboat is to be shipoed to India at the end of the present month. Waiju is eaid to be shaping fairly well in his schooling brer hurdles. The Ashburton trainee E. Griffen is contemplating a move to Southland. Ono thousand pounds was asked for iho crack pacer Emmeline a few days ago. ' A message from Wanganui advises that Corazon is scratched for- trv» SteeoleehnKp. The Tapanui Racing Club contemplate carrying out extensive improvements on their course. Yanada showed a lot of pace in her race last week, but failed to stay on her full journey. Antarctic pave a pleasing display tast week when being schooled over the big fences at Ellerslie. The Soult filly Editah. who scored in the Ashburton Juvenile Handicap, is a halfsister to King's Post. The three-year-old gelding Amalgam, who ran in the Trial Plate at Ashburton, is a to Gold Coin. | —M?**,ight Sun is making an excellent recovery from the- trouble which befel him in the Hawkc's Bay Cur). Gold Wave, who figured amongst the Tunners in the Laghm-u: Plate, is a two-year-old half-sister to Gunboat. Three thousand eight hundred and fifty-five horses raced in England last season. The list toppsd 1000 in 1901. Paisano and Continuance in the hurdles aoid steeples at the Wanganui meeting. i searon at 300 gs. His half-brother. Carpathian, by Isinglass, is standing at 9!ro. . Mar J. Grigg had quite a fleet of horses carrying his colours at the Ashburton meeting, out none of thern were fleet enough. A race meeting held at Caulfield r*>I oentlv reunited in a profit of 700eovs, which | goes to the funds of the St. Vincent Hospii tal. I —The bririant horse Maori King has bsen put out of training, and probably his turf oaTeer has come to a conclusion. | Corazon was withdrawn from his Wanganui engagements owing to striking himself, but he is again striding along freely in his work. I Boanerges and Blakeny were shipped to Sydney week. G. Price and A. Oliver accompany the horses, and will be absent a, couple of months. D. J. Price has five hor?es belonging to Mi E. J. Watt in his stable «tt Caulfield. They consist of Wimtnero, Bridge, Ireland, and a couple of yearlings. | —lt is strongly suggestive of a careless registration of names when one Blue Lake can win races whilst another of the anma name is on the Forfeit List. Clanmena was aent out a strong

favourite for the Fairfield Wollor, but failed to show up in the race, and did not appear on the second day of the meeting. — Acceptances for the North Ota-go Jockey Club's meeting are due on Thursday of thi* v>eek. Entries for the Trial Plato and Tho Shorts are due at the same date. The well-known hurdler BlacK Northern was sold last week at 400sovs, and at th» conclusion of the Greed Northern National meeting will be shipped to Australia. St. Frusquin, the brother to San Francisco, is standing at 300-guinea fee in England. San Francisco is five years younger than the famous rival of Persimmon. A jumping competition woe held after a recent run of the Birchwood Hunt. Six entries were received, a.nd the placings wero Kirkland, Parramatta, and The Whip. The Riverton Racing Club have voted £5 5s to the Clifden Hack Racing Club to supplement the stake given to the steeplechase on the programme of the letter club, Gold Coin, who captured both the chief events at the Timaru meeting, failed to showup in the Ashburton Cup, and her form was not in keeping with her previous, ruaning. All Guns, who won a selling race *6 Wellington, appears to nave been a risky win for the ohib, as he has been placed eve the Forfeit List with over a century against his name. ■ A Melbourne cablegram states that tb*. V.R.C. will increase next season's stakes bv £IOOO. The chief increases are in the Fisher and Loch Plate, each from 750sova to lOOOsovs. Maple Leaf, the three-year-old filly by Canada from Sweet Nell, who is about a three-parts sister to Pallas, is rather speedy, and may develop into a useful port over short courses. True Knight ran a couple of sound races at Ashburton. On the first day Bellah b?at him a short head for a place, and on the second day he was the only one. to get near Sea King. Genius, who has been off the scene for some little time, was amongst the runners at Ashburton. He showed that a spell has not lost his pace, but he did not look ready to run out a race. At a . recent run of the Bdrchwood Hounds the following horses were out to qualify:—Parra-matta. Kirkland, Cody, The) Whip, Waimahaka, Foreet-me not, Seagull, Colac Bay, Jack, and Ohio. Crosbie was not beaten very far to either of his races at Ashburton, but did not appear to hold a winning chance on either day. It was his first time out sinceon amplication of the knife, and he may improve. Red Rain, the half-brother of Tread. mill, was amongst the runners at Ashburton, but did not look in racing condition. The son of Clanranald was at once expected to take honours on the turf, but failed to stand training. Turna appears to have developed quite a habit of getting into a bad position in the early part of some of his races. Minus this bad luck, he should soon win, as it is noticeable that he generally finishes <vell utter losing ground. The well-known brood mare Thame staksd herself a few days ago, and there ia some doubt fis to whether she will recover. Thame wa« got by Sword Dancer from Lady Mersey (sister to Carbine), but has produced nothing of any great note at the etui horses wnose names start with ,f M" annexed eight races at the Manawatu meeting. Following "M" on tnat occasion meant getting in the money, but anyone who adopted it as a system would soon get in tho mire. Stephanos was made a solid chance for the Longbeach Handicap, and wou from end to end. Some of the pursuit did not, however, appear to be particularly strenuous. Stephanos was got by Clanranald from Stephanie, by Stepniak, from Fauna, by Maxim. The Riverton Racing Club intend cat* rying out further improvements on therg course; They will include a stewards' stand, tea kiosk, extra stalls, and terraces for both enclosures. It is also intended to erect half a dozen stalls for use of trainers wh«n working their horses on the beach. iStayboy is to go under tho hummer on Saturday. He has some good performances over hurdles, and rati third m the last Enfield Steeplechase. Sta-yboy is quite sound and well up to weight. He ehould make an excellent hunter, and may perhaps 'land an-. other race or two if put in work. Glanapp had a winner at Caulfieid recently when Paislie. a horea got by the eon of Enthusiast from Nenuphar, started favoorite and won a six furlong race by four lengths in 1.15. Nenuphar was got by Apro* mont from Wateraprite. and Paislie is a halt sister to Waterahoot, the dam of Ermengarde. A Waneanui writer is responsible for the statement that Equitas went a-misa prior to the recent meeting j at Trentham, end hae bsen turned out. She is to be taken up again in view of the spring meetings, and will, it is hoped, survioe another preparation. More than one rider was lucky to h«ve escaped a tenancy of tho carpet ot Ashburton. No doubt a satisfactory explanation would have been forthcoming, but it would have required a fairly sound one to have excused the handling of one runner at the meeting. Steperina, who followed up his success at Timaru by scorinEr in the Trial Handi- ; cap. i*> a three-year-old gelding by Stepniolc" from Pelerine, by Wolverine from Irene, the dam of Petrovna and co. Steperina displays the family speed, and should develop into a useful performer. The Southland horao Takely, who ran in the Otasro SteopleDhase the season before last, is advertised for sale. He is a good weight-oarrvin.j' hunter, and goes well in harrieara. T-akely is for sale at SOsovs. and further particulars ocn be obtained fr-jju tho Pnorfring Editor of this paper. The North Otago Jockey Club'* winter meeting, which takes place on Thursday and Friday of n-rxt week, iWOHoifes to be a very successful meeting. The train tterricc from Dunedin facilitates a run to tho iruy-Hnsr. as it ai-rives in Oa-mn.ru at 11.30, and there is ample time to catch the second express a'' the conclusion of tho d-nv. Aileen, who started on both days at Ashburton, is a three-year-old sister to the famous mare Emmeline, who holds the distinction of being the fastest pacing mare in Australasia, Aileen is evidently a- Speedy eorl. but is at present a trifle green. She should prove a winner when furnished out and acting with a little taore experience. Thistledown carried a good deal ot money in .both her races at Ashburton. but could not get into th« danger zono in either of her races. On the first day her usual pilot, A. H. Wilson, was on top, but a change to P. E. Jones on the second day failed to make an improvement in her running. Kiltp was a etrong order for the Winchmore Wetter at Ashburton. but after landing first in the straight he failed to keep going, and in the last few strides w-»s cut out of second money by Kilmeny. Ho was again saddled up in the Wakanui Handicap, in which Pilgrim's Way nosed him out of second inon<>r. On both days at Asliburian. horses

both in the flat races and trotting events, «ere handled in an unsatisfactory manner. SaSfl? stewards had reason to excuse the displays, but it is advisable to let me Pullfc know that some running.has not escaped notice-even when it admits of a highly plausible excuse. _ There was a ***£ r « " Aerial, who won the Dispersal Ishhurton, and as J* » n * the win*nd the iatl ) er touting sport. -BPWjSj f 1 3.973 for brisk, and the rf the meeting or £**rV* of money was Beacon's meeting. A gpoa a™",, h e been Shift out or the receipts would considerably higher. meetings to -There are only two more d go belore concluding our » c,n £ that the ft is highly °XtoL£»*»* Wing.tw programmes for botn v« L in „ racing year. '^ nT -old filly Tunning at There was a two-yeaE^&Su a record in Ashb'urxon which prooably holds a reco nomenclature.. Shews got by terg D.I:C., and is called OJ.C. « aha a few punctuation marks co * names of the fillly.and her «» $„„„„ The name is reminiscent <rf *a % American horse Jayr Eye See, w d brief period held the wo " fe d on the as s ,rs a »f yg; zaxz he should prove a cheap.horse, ana n on the turf, together with J<™j££' when command the Patronage of breed at the top tf fe unfortunately he valuea at about 2«oogs, out however, is a short-pedigreed horse. ™£ *£ win . may not stop him from s.Mng plenty oi The Royal Fusilier filly Blue Lake is evidently a fairly smart performer over a short . C our/e. At Ashbur on she *■«]«* j arts %stj: T 1 got by Eoyal Fusilier from Blue, Bn«V by fforriwee from Blue Water, by St. Jaeger S£3e. Blue Fire and Phaeton belong AshbSton but on each occasion bumped fto Something better than himself. In the ftrove Farm Handicap he paced it witn WKinTom about five furlongs, but the faster then drew out, to win by a «oofe-»* gin.- On the second day Blue Lake allowed nothlnt to get near her at any stage of the race-. Pilgrim's Way looked in better racin e condition ftan when he a winner, out last week met something a bit on the second day at Ashburton gave a win to a very promising two-year-old gelding named Don Oiosar! whose brilliancy appeared to quite dazzle the rest of the field as the others failed to get near him. Perhaps they wore content to admire him at a distance - Don Cesar was got by Prince Imperial from Maritana, who is probably identical with the General Tracy mare of that name. Uon Cesar was a strong favourite, and displayed a epeed which should make him a sure winner with ordinary luck. Sea King, who won the Grove Farm Handicap and the Autumn Handicap at Ashburton, scored decisively on each occasion, and his form was a decided improvement on his Timaru display. At Timaru, when racing over a mile, *oam Flake apparently had him well beaten at a little over six furlongs, but last week the Calibre fillv did not seem to get within gunshot of the Sant Ilario gelding. Sea King was on offer at 200 gs during the currency of the Ashburton meeting and should prove a fairlv cheap horse at the price. —Broomstick, the sire of Sweeper 11. who •won the Two Thousand Guineas, has a representative at Randwick in King Broomstick. Broomstick i.» by Ben Brush from Elf b- Halliard from Svlva Belle, by Bend Or.' \.""""e Ravello .II (dam of Sweeper II) | 3 'by c ir Hugo from Unco Guid. by TJnea® from ~-nuine, by Fitz Roland from a mare by .Voltigeur. Broomstick and Ravello II were at the stud in America, and in that country Ravello II had several foals, the lest of the lot being in ISOS. She was then served bv Broom-stick -and "Mit to England, •where she foaled Sweeper II _ Juvenile Handicap, in which he was only beaten in the last few strides, is said to be out -of a trotting-bred mare. He was got by Glenapp, who was imported from England by the Government. Glenapp won the Chesterfield Cup at Goodwood, New Market October Handicap, and otherwise displayed form which demonstrated that he could gailop. Glenapp was got by Enthusiast (son of Sterling), whose third dam was a half-sister to Saunteror. the sire of Steppe. Finnart, the dam of Glenapp, was got by Ayrshires from the Springfield mare Spray. Enthusiast ?s the sire of Eager, whose stock are shaping well in England. Probable's dual run at Ashburton was one of the surprises of the meeting, and those who backed for some reason or other on the first day gathered a fairly large dividend. Despite the fact that he is a stallion, Probable was recently sold at a "'fiver." And his return to form is believed to be due to- the benefit derived from swimming. He looks unsound, but the going was right in bis favour last week. Probable's success accentuates the bad luck which has clung to H. Emmer?on for some considerable time. Emmerson has kept Probable for about twn vears' time, but failed to score a win with him, although he ran second in the Tinwald Handicap at Ashburton in the spring of the present season. Bone Reve, who scored in the Laghmor Plato at Ashburton, won his race in good style, although it has to be remembered he was not opposed by a particularly brilliant lot. He is a fair-sized youngster, and should develop into a useful three-year-old. Last week he ran a trifle green, and had io l e shaken uu X,o attend to the business in hand and not because anything was threatening ie menace his chance of winning. He was °of by Boniform from Dreamer, bv Mostyn from Moorooroo. by Trenton, from Nightmare, and is almost a brother to the speedy Formless who was got by Multiform from Dreamer, whilst Bon Reve is got by Boniform (son of Multiform) from Dreamer, Bon Reve, in running back to Nightmare, is also closelj telated to Nightfall and Noctuiforni. 7—The inclusion of Dsarest's nam© in the

| nominations for the principal events at Oamaru and Dunedin arouses the hope that Mr J. Buckley intends to have at least some of his flat racers sent out at this end jof the Dominion. The North Island trained I horses sent out to carry the popular tri* coloured banner have not achieved a great I deal of success of late, and perhaps their j bearers could race with iw>:e pleasure and ! profit to the owner if seen more frequently I down this way. It may savour of impertij nence to tell an owner wuat should be t>nc I with horses, but there is not much doubt j that the pleasure of owning is greatly en- ! hanoed by the pleasure of seeng them fre j quently, and by close and personal acquaintj anee finding out their real merit, from the- ! owner's point of view. —lt is frequently noted that some horse 3 are lucky to win, but, per contra, Ceylon was extremely unlucky to lose the Trial j Handicap at Ashburton. She got well away, but soon lost her place, and was apparently j unable to pace it with the leaders over the ' first four furlongs. Once in the straight, her I rider appeared to make an impossible ati tempt to get through on the rails, and after | pulling his mount on to the outside, finished twice as fast as anything in the race. j On the second day there was a heap of | money for hex, and she went out at strong odds on chance in a field of eleven, which | included two or three better hones tear • she met on the first day. On this occa- ; sion Ceylon won decisively, and there seemed j to be ample reason for requeuing her r'cer ; (tot explain the first day's running. It is j quite clear that punters flatly declined to ; accept the first day's form as correct by the | manner in which they poured in the money on the second day. The great American trotting stallion The Harvester changed hands at Chicago last month for a sum considerably in excess of j 50,000 dollars, Mr C. K. G. Billings being , the purchaser. The Harvester, who is re- : cognised as the greatest horse in harness , in the. world to-day, was the property of the I August Uihlcin Estate, of Milwaukee, and: his now owner took possession at onoe and! ' sent him to Memphis, where he is now under the charge of Ed. Geora. This horse, which for three years has been the sensation of Hue ! trotting turf, will be paraded before Boyalty • the coming summer, as Mr Billings will, I with several others- of his orack stable, take ! him to Russia. Mr Billings has been specially invited by the- Russian Government, which takes a keen interest in trotters, to visit, the empire. The Harvester and Uhlan | will be the stors of the consignment. It was in 1910 at Columbus, Ohio, that The Harvester became the national stallion trotting champion by going the mile in 2.01. ;.The Harvester is by Walnut Hall, out of I Notelet by Moko, and is seven years old. Tannhauser scored in the Ashburton I Cup in a meritorious manner. He was al ways well placed during the race,, and, al' , though Jones was moving on his mount ! at the foot of the straight, the son of Mar--1 tian won decisively at the finish. Tannhauser has displayed promising form through- ! out the season, but on one cr two occasions I has failed to run up to expectations. In j the spring of the season he was sent out a ! good favourite for the Ashburton County i Handicap, but a scrimmage at the finish ; of the race spoilt his 6hance. At this | period he was fancied in some quarters for the New Zealand Cup, but did not go to j the post. He ran fair races in the Metro i politan and Fendalton, and, later, won the | Publioan's Handicap. He was one of the I rank outsiders in- the Great Easter, And | again failed in the Final Handicap. His win | of last week and a fair third on the second j day gives promise of better things, as like I most of the Martian's, he may be found imi proving with age.

The ancient van in which Blink Bonny and Blair Athol travelled to their Ep-om victories was recently removed from its old home. Wold Cottage, Norton, Malton, to Scarborough, wheire it 3 owner, Mrs Dawson, sister of Mr William I'Anson, has gone- to reside. The van has a remarkable history, connecting Malton with pre-railway days. It was built at Cambridge 80 .years ae;o for the late William I'Anson. It was then at Spring Cottage, Malton. and Blink Bonny journeyed to Epsom in it in 1857, when she won tho Derby and the Oaks, and again in 1864 Blair Athol was conveyed to his Derby victory in—it, and he also made the journey to Pari3 therein when he ran second to Vermont in tho Grand Prix. The coining of the railways resulted in its being used as a shepherd's hut on the Highfield estate, and later, in the days of the Malton Steeplechases, it served as a " Black Maria" to convey sharpers and thieves to the police station. Some years ago the present Mr William I'Anson presented it to Mrs Dawson, who bad it placed in a prominent position in front of Wold Cottage. The van was removed by road, and it is to be preserved at Scarborough. The Forbury Park track has produced a 2min gait and a 2min 83-osec mark (or better), but if the crown of the ground on J which the course is laid had not been : broken, there is every possibility that the j going would have been much faster than I it is. The old turf was over half a century j in formation, and had a great deal of natural buoyancy and life which must have partially lest when the, surface was broken. The American records are materially assisted by the knowledge and care displayed in building their tracks, and the fathers ! of the light harness sport endeavour to im v part all the life possible to the going in order to practically bounce their horses along when assaulting a record. The best tracks are made with a foundation of diagonallylaid sods of turf, and then faced with the ; orthodox dirt or clay surface. Such a foundation tends to impart a good deal of life to the going, but at Forbury Park a splendid turf was sacrificed and a possible chance of gaining the 2min mark lost or deferred for many years. Speed may not be I all and everything that is desirable, but I extreme speed carrys a stamp which strongly advocates the merit and value of racing as I a big factor in improving the stock. j recently of Sam Budd, an ex-jockey, who I origiuallv came from Australia., The Latest ; says:—"For some time past he had appeared ; in ill-health, but all the same his death came j as a surprise. As a rider over hurdles Budd j was a dashing horseman, who did not know j the meaning of fear, and! was in tibo eairly j days connected with a jumping horse named I Snare. Snare belonged to a partnership, and it was the death of one of the partners j that once placed Budd on his trial for life I in the pre-war days. He had won a race at i Pretoria, and evidently something had gone wrong with the backing of tile winner. There was a fracas, and Budd, in swinging the saddle round his head as a, weapon, either of offence or defence, struck one of the partners, Irvine, on the head, and he died. Budd was tried for murder, but the capital charge failed, and he was sentenced to six months' imprisonment. A man of but few words, Budd was not the sort to make many friends, and his was a sad and checkered career. Old-timers still talk of his great fight with Jack Parkes. Both were following their pro-

fessi-on of jockeys, and Jack Parkes was i.be acknowledged king of the boys, all of whom stood in fear of him. One night, at the old Empire Theatre, Johannesburg, the pair got into a heated argument, the upshot being that they met the following morning near the Turffontein Racecourse. An immense crowd journeyed out to witness the battle, which, after some 29 rounds of heavy fighting under prize-ring rules, resulted in a victory tar Sam Budd."